The Big Green men's tennis team returned to Hanover from California with much-needed tans and excellent preparation for their upcoming Ivy season despite going winless in their last three contests and falling to 6-7 on the season. While the rest of the student body was busy enjoying their well-deserved break, the men's tennis team was hard at work, taking on the highly ranked teams of the University of Utah, Pepperdine and UC-Santa Barbara.
The Big Green played their opening match of the break against Utah on Saturday, March 20 in lovely La Jolla. Dartmouth put up quite a fight, even though they lost 4-3.
After being swept in the doubles matches, David Webb '05 and Mark Brodie '07 breathed new life into the Big Green by winning both their matches in straight-sets. At No. 2, Webb, in his first match after being off in the winter, returned with a fury, dominating his opponent, Tomasz Gryb, 6-1, 6-1. Brodie, playing in the No. 4 slot, continued his impressive rookie season with a convincing victory over Dantley Young 6-4, 6-3.
Dartmouth's third point was the result of the resilience of Jesse Paer '04. After dropping the first set to opponent Ryan Scott, Paer surged back to take the next two, 6-4, 6-0.
Next, Dartmouth traveled to sunny Malibu on March 24 to take on Pepperdine, the 20th ranked team in the nation. Despite falling to the Waves, 6-1, senior Drew Dinkmeyer '04 played a riveting three-set match at the No. 3 position, overtaking his opponent Scott Doerner, 6-7, 6-4, 10-8.
The doubles pair of Paer and Borko Kereshi '04 also picked up a win at the No. 2 position knocking off the 37th nationally ranked pair of Doerner and Alex Herrera, 8-6.
Dartmouth's last stop came a day later when they faced No. 70 U.C. Santa Barbara on March 25. While the Big Green lost 6-1, the dynamic duo of Paer and Kereshi were victorious once again in the No. 2 doubles position, winning another decisive 8-6 match.
Also victorious was Webb, who continued to prove his readiness for the Ivy season as he cruised past his opponent at the No. 2 singles slot 6-3,6-2.
The Big Green hopes their home- court advantage and the lovely crisp New Hampshire air will help them to bounce back from their difficult road trip when they face Middlebury College on March 31 in the Boss Tennis Center.
